NEW DELHI: Lhuan-dre Pretorius (51) and Hardus Viljoen (3/24) delivered strong all-round performances as Paarl Royals sealed a convincing 36-run win over Joburg Super Kings in the Eliminator to book a spot in SA20 Qualifier 2.

Batting first, the Royals piled up an imposing 210 for five and then kept the Super Kings in check, restricting them to 174 for eight. Paarl Royals will now face two-time champions Sunrisers Eastern Cape in Qualifier 2 on Friday.

Batting depth gives Royals the edge

Pretorius set the tone at the top, smashing 51 from 34 balls with five sixes and two fours. He was well supported by Kyle Verreynne, who struck a quick 30 off 15 balls, and Dan Lawrence, who added 36 from 23 deliveries with a couple of fours and three sixes.

Asa Tribe provided the finishing touch, remaining unbeaten on 30 off just 16 balls, as the Super Kings bowlers struggled to contain the Royals during the latter stages of the innings.

Early strikes sink Super Kings

In reply, Joburg Super Kings endured a disastrous start, slumping to 14 for three inside the first four overs and 40 for four by the end of the powerplay.

Viljoen struck early, removing Neil Trimmers (8) and having Matthew de Villiers (0) caught, while Bjorn Fortuin chipped in by dismissing Rivaldo Moonsamy (3) to leave the chase in tatters.

Ottneil Baartman (2/47) then added further pressure, dismissing Leus du Plooy (10) and ending Wiaan Mulder’s threatening knock of 41 off 27 balls, caught by Sikandar Raza.

Nqobani Mokoena produced a timely breakthrough by sending back captain James Vince for 47 off 29 balls, just as the Super Kings looked to rebuild, leaving them reeling at 98 for five in the 12th over.

Having lost too many key wickets early, the Super Kings never truly recovered and eventually closed on 174 for eight, falling well short of the target.

(With PTI Inputs)